Basecamp podcast: November kicks off ski season in the Boston area

Country Ski and Sport will host another November expo at its warehouse in Hanover, Mass. (Eric Wilbur)

November is the unofficial start of the ski season. 

In the Boston area, that means two separate expos are ready to get you prepared to hit the slopes this winter. 

Ray Stenson, from Country Ski and Sports, joined Basecamp hosts Eric Wilbur and Mike Specian to discuss the third annual expo in Hanover, boasting what is billed as New England’s largest ski and snowboard sale.

One week later, the Snowbound Expo, which had been postponed the last two years due to Covid, finally makes its debut at the Hynes Convention Center. 

Listen: 

Highlights from this edition of the Basecamp podcast

On Country Ski preparing for its Hanover expo: 

Stenson:  “Just like everyone else gets excited for the show, the people who work the show get excited for it. The circle it on their calendar every year. They’re pumped. They are people who’ve worked in the ski industry for years, but might have, you know, a different job now that still want to dip their toes into it. We love helping people talking about skiing. So the show is gonna be a bunch of experienced ski industry people helping people out, whether it’s the four days a year that they do it still, or reps which work every day. Even for myself, it’s a lot of work, but it’s something that just gets you excited.

On what to expect at the new Snowbound Expo: 

Specian: “The days of discounted lift tickets, unfortunately, are gone. Season passes have sort of taken away from that. You know, even bus programs are tougher and tougher because the tour operators can’t get the ticket pricing they need.to make it all work. So it’s all changed. I think Snowbound will be interesting. Would put it on my calendar.” 

The podcast can be streamed at skijournal.com/podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts, including Apple, Spotify and Amazon.